It was a dark and stormy nighton Atlantis
by donttouch
Summary: Challenge accepted! I begin and end with "It was a dark and stormy night". My first Stargate Atlantis fic, please, be gentle. John, Rodney and Ronon meet in the Atlantis hall.


AN: My very first Stargate Atlantis fic. And Sandy? Challenge accepted! I am brave enough to begin and end with "It was a dark and stormy night".

-

It was a dark and stormy night on the Atlantis base. John Sheppard was tired, but the wailing of the wind kept him awake. A storm, a simple storm, had knocked out their communication, and the city had gone dark. It was as if Atlantis herself had taken cover from the storm, but she still tried to soothe her inhabitants by whispering in their ears. Most people mistook it for silence, but John knew better. Atlantis's words soothed his overactive mind. With all the horrors he had known here in the Pegasus, he welcomed her distractions, but when a small part of his room began to glow as a nightlight, he frowned up at the ceiling.

"I'm a Colonel, I don't need a nightlight. I'm not afraid of the dark!" he grumbled and turned onto his side. The low glow faded into darkness again, and John felt panicked for a moment before he steeled himself. Terror always lurked in the darkness. He tossed and turned, keeping an eye on hiw watch. 0338 in the morning...making a decision, he tossed his blanket and stood before dressing. He grabbed his flashlight and headed out the door. The hallway was silent, nothing moved, and he couldn't hear the wind here. He looked at the walls, the closed doors, and swallowed hard. He had never been afraid of the dark, but the eerie silence and the darkness, and the fact that he knew about Wraith and Genii, and bugs and ghosts and everything between, made him uneasy. The sound of footsteps made him jump and without thinking he hid behind a wall, waiting for whatever it was to pass him. When he saw McKay, he couldn't resist the chance to make him jump, and he sent a silent plea to Atlantis to keep him hidden from any lifesign detectors McKay could have brought. Rodney was passing him right now and when a cold, slender hand gripped his shoulder, Rodney screamed like a girl and began running. John ran after him. "RODNEY, it's just me!" John shouted after McKay who soon stopped and turned, panting and furious.

"For the love of science, Colonel, it's pitch black here and you didn't show up on my lifesigns detector!" Rodney shook the detector in the dark.

"Says I'm right next to you," John grinned. Rodney looked at his detector and huffed.

"You could have given me a heartattack, I'm actually feeling a bit faint!" he turned on his heel and began walking with John following him.

"Why are you having your lifesigndetector with you anyway?" John asked.

"Because...because I've...brought it on so many trips it's kind of a part of me now," Rodney said. John brought his flashlight up and saw the crimson stains on Rodney's cheeks.

"You're afraid of the dark. Admit it! You thought there might be something out here, on Atlantis, that came out in the dark and would hunt you," John grinned widely.

"No, that's not it at all!" Rodney complained, "It's just part of my gear, okay? Nothing more. And why were you hiding in the hallway anyway? What are you doing up?"

"Couldn't sleep, wind was howling," John shrugged as they kept walking. "Where are we going?"

"WE are not going anywhere, Colonel Scary, I however, am going to see if I can get the power back up," Rodney turned to him. "Why WERE you hiding in the hallway?"

"Because I saw you and decided to scare you," John grinned. Plausible excuse anyway, but Rodney looked like he wasn't buying it. "Same reason you're wearing that lifesigndetector so close to your face," he admitted and Rodney nodded. They turned to walk again when a huge something grabbed them. They jumped, Rodney screamed, and Ronon laughed, a deep rumbling sound deep in his chest. "Ronon," John sighed after catching his breath.

"You two could be heard all across the city. And Rodney, that scream...I thought you were a woman in need."

"Oh ha ha Conan, very funny!" Rodney huffed.

"I want to watch a horror movie. Seems like this would be the time to do it," Ronon grinned in the darkness and John smiled.

"Sounds good to me. Want to come with, Rodney?"

"No, I have to see if-"

"Baaaaaaaaaaac bac bac bac bac baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaac bac bac bac BAGAWK!" John said quietly.

"I am NOT a chicken!" Rodney growled, "Fine, let's go watch a scary movie, let me tear it apart like a piece of Zelenka's awful work!"

"Nope, not allowed. You have to immerse yourself in the movie, Rodney," John said even as they began walking to the decompression room where they caught a movie when time permitted it. As they entered the room, nothing lit up.

"See? Hah, no scary movie, I'm going to go wor-"

"We can tell stories," John suggested and Rodney shot him a murderous look. "We have enough creepy stories to last us a lifetime," John grinned.

"Agreed. Chicken, Rodney?" Ronon asked and Rodney narrowed his eyes at them before sitting down. Ronon sat down too, and so did john, turning out his flashlight. They were tossed into complete darkness, until John's voice, floating somewhere to the left of the other two, began speaking.

"It was a dark and stormy night..."

AN: Very first fic. I enjoyed writing it as much as I hope you enjoyed reading it. - Winnie


End file.
